The smoking ban. Introduced on July 1st 2007 (in England, but the Scots had to go one better and implement it officially on March 26th 2006. Plus Wales did it on April 2nd 2007 – if only it had been a day earlier – and Northern Ireland on April 20th 2007). The ban is now almost 10 years old.

For those that don’t remember how it all came about, a brief history lesson is needed.

“make most enclosed public areas, including offices and factories, smoke-free.”

Of course, places like members only clubs and pubs which did not serve food would be exempt. At least, that was the plan. Even then, opponents of smoking – the totalitarian fuckwits – were “ disappointed they stop short of an outright ban” (natch). Of course, all this was with the thin, no not thin, but totally transparent “evidence” of the ‘harms of second hand tobacco smoke” where it was considered a simple wisp of tobacco smoke would simultaneously rip out a smokers lungs and those of a defenceless child a few hundred miles away.

So it’ll come as no surprise to regular readers that once the ban became law, the exemptions previously bandied about actually became smokefree. Naturally, that now includes the actual written in exemptions too.

The park, and open air places keep cropping up, so it is no wonder than that the Royal Society of Public Health are at it again. It’s been touted before, and was (rightly) denounced by all and sundry except for frothy mouthed anti-smoker zealots who claim it is the next logical step (natch) for a smokefree generation by some random arbitrary date (usually 2025).

Of course, this time RSPH want to take it further (see how it works yet?) by including:

“parks, pub and restaurant gardens, at public events and shopping areas”

Which is pretty much everywhere that smoking isn’t already banned. Y’see, not content with forcing smokers outside from pubs and other public spaces (one of those ridiculous notions as it makes smokers more visible, therefore by their own logic, makes smoking more appealing to the impressionable yoof), the utter fuckwittery of these illiberal knuckle draggers has moved on to trying to get smoking banned out in the open as the “next logical step”.

Y’see, this is how things begin. Call for the ludicrous, make a big song and dance about it, make all kinds of batshit claims about “protecting kids” and other such nonsense, and eventually enough ‘public support’ (from skewed polls, natch) will cause gullible MPs and Ministers to pass legislation that further restricts people’s freedoms.

Of course, RSPH are claiming they want the bans to drive folk towards e-cigs. Let me be abundantly clear. There is nothing worse than using a consumer driven product – such as e-cigs – to beat on another group. If smokers want to try e-cigs, they’ll try them in their own time. Smokers should never be coerced to switch if they don’t want to, simply to avoid a ban.

RSPH claim that “the move would lead to one third of smokers turning to e-cigarettes.” – will it fuck. Once again, this is first class star gazing fuckwittery. It’s showing that they really have no clue why people smoke.

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5 thoughts on “First they came for..”

This totalitarian lifestyle control must stop. It’s time to demand the repeal of smoking bans. Once they are done with smoking they will attack vapes (they already are banning vaping indoors and out in entire cities the US.

Long past time to repeal smoking bans. Vaping is only being banned because smoking has been banned for so long that it is deemed as “logical” to ban it. If there weren’t any smoking bans, then there’d be no need to include vaping in any kind of “clean air” Acts.

Piece by piece, the freedom to smoke and vape wherever we please is being eroded.

Divide smokers and vapers – conquer both. Mind you, present company aside as you get the danger completely, there are some swivel eyed, born again vapers who can’t wait for more attacks on smokers to force them towards vaping. Not me and not millions more smokers like me. I’ll stuff my e-pipe with tobacco, let it heat and burn, and then hide behind vapers. Public Health won’t be so happy to support them once they realise they’re being used to hide smokers. I will not allow vapers to force me into 3rd class citizenship! #VichyFrench